Full name Ernest Joseph North Name Joe North Date of birth 23 September 1895 Role Football player | Place of death Havant, England Years Team | |
Place of birth Burton-on-Trent, England Date of death 24 August 1955(1955-08-24) (aged 59) Died August 24, 1955, Havant, United Kingdom | ||
Ernest Joseph "Joe" North MM (23 September 1895 – 24 August 1955) was an English professional footballer. North, who played as a striker, played for Sheffield United, Arsenal, Reading, Gillingham, Norwich City, Watford and Northfleet United. He was also a professional cricketer for Middlesex.
Career
North's early footballing career was interrupted by World War I, wherein he enlisted and fought as an acting sergeant in the Royal Engineers, the Machine Gun Corps and thereafter as a lieutenant in the Tank Corps. North eventually won the Military Medal during the conflict. During this time he also featured as a guest player for Sheffield United.
North joined up with Arsenal in 1919, as an amateur. Playing as a centre forward, he was initially in the side as an understudy to club mainstays Henry White and Fred Pagnam. He scored on his debut in a First Division match against Oldham Athletic on 7 February 1920. However, he could not fully break into the team, making 23 appearances (scoring six goals) in three seasons before leaving Highbury for Reading in May 1922.
He later played for Watford, Norwich City and Gillingham. After retiring, he was briefly a coach at Northfleet United. He also played cricket for Middlesex and later became an umpire in the Minor Counties Championship.